Tips on banding a bird

Banding Tips:

General Information

If you are plan to ever sell, race or show your birds, they should be banded with a closed metal band. These bands are available from several suppliers. Banded birds are more easily identified and the correct age is clearly known.

Baby chicks are banded in the early days of their life. Banding is done when the band will snuggly fit over the ankle joint. When to band will depend on the chicks growth rate and band size. Chicks born first or fed more, will grow at a faster rate. Chicks born later, or not fed as well, will grow slower and may have to be banded a day or two later. The size of the clutch can also affect the chick growth rate. One or two chicks in a nest will grow at a faster rate than three or five chicks. Keep an eye on their size daily.

Banding:

Supplies to have ready include; bands, quik stop and paper tissue. Some people recommend using a lubricant such as; Mineral Oil, Vaseline or K-Y Jelly. If you want or need to use these, a toothpick or cotton swab is usefull for applying the lubricant. I personally only use a lubricant when I have waited too long to band and now have to squeeze the band on.

When you remove the chick from the nest, first place them on a paper towel or tissue for a couple of seconds and let them poop. When chicks are handled, pooping seems to be the first priority for them.

Now you're ready to take on the task of banding. If you use a lubricant place a very small amount on either the inside of the band or on the chicks ankle joint. (Using a toothpick or cotton swab may be helpful). Using too much, will just create a mess. Getting a lubricant all over your fingers can make them slippery and hard to handle the small band.

Take the three front toes and straighten them out and then place the band over the toes. (Watching which direction you put the band will ensure the band is on correctly. The band number should be readable when the bird is standing). Make sure you catch all three toes. Slide the band back over the ankle joint and past the back toe. Make sure the back toe is not caught in the band. Again the toothpick may be handy to gently pry the toe out of the band. The quik stop it handy to have on hand in case any toes are accidently cut.

If you find the band slips over the ankle too easily, stop. Banding too early will only mean the band will come off. The band should slip on snuggly. Aways check the chicks for a couple of days to make sure the band does not come off.

Banding the babies in the evening is also recommended. The hen will have less time to notice the bands before sunset.

While you have the nest out and banding your birds, it is a good time to inspect the nest and trim the excess nest material (and poop) from around the top of the nest. You may also want to reshape the nest a bit. If the bands slide on the babies rather easily, you may want to make the nest deeper and cone shaped to hide the babies feet. If are confident the bands will not come off, you can reshape the nest to give the growing chicks a little more elbow room.